Hi! My name is Justin Han. I am originally from Boston, Massachusetts, but now I currently live in Irvine California. I am an incoming sophomore at Crean Lutheran High School. I enjoy playing squash and basketball. Apart from physical activities, I enjoy being with friends and family. Presentation
Project:
Plastic Degradation
Inspiration:
My inspiration was the recent movement by Parley. Parley has collaborated with Adidas to create shoes with plastic bottles. Eleven water bottles were used per shoe to create the woven mesh on many featured designs. The amount of plastic waste contaminating the Earth creates an urgent problem that must be solved.
Problem
at Hand:
According to Ocean Crusaders, 100,000 marine creatures and 1,000,000 seabirds die from plastic waste on a yearly basis. Eight million metric tons of plastic waste pollute the ocean. Apart from large pieces of plastic, microplastics are highly prevalent in most bodies of water. These microplastics attach to creatures guts and does not pass through easily. The microplastic particles often get woven into the fish guts leading to fishes suffering from dietary issues.
Background Information:
The focus plastic of this project is PET. PET is known as polyethylene terephthalate. This plastic is non-biodegradable and degradation processes are still being tested. PET is known to be broken down by mealworms or Idionella Sakaiensis. Mealworms are known to have a strong stomach, which most likely contains a bacteria or enzyme that converts plastic into biodegradable substances. Researchers at Stanford University have noted that 100 mealworms are capable of breaking down around 40 grams of PET a day. However, mealworms prefer eating other substances such as potatoes. The biodegradable substances created from the mealworm are primarily starch and carbon dioxide. Idionella Sakaiensis, on the other hand, is a bacteria found by research scientists in Kyoto, Japan. Idionella Sakaiensis breaks down the PET substances through a two enzyme process. First, PETase and water break down the plastic into MHET. The chemical MHET is further broken down by MHETase, creating ethylene glycol and terephthalic acid.
Focus Group:
For this project, I will be focusing on the bacteria Idionella Sakaiensis. Idionella Sakaiensis is a year old discovery where its use is still in development. This bacteria has been proven to break down PET. Polyethylene terephthalate, or PET, is hard to break down with Idionella Sakaiensis being one of the only bacterias to efficiently break down PET.
Current Bioremediation Methods:
Current bioremediation methods break down most plastics. PVC (polyvinyl chloride, polyurethane, PCL (polycaprolactone), PHA (polyhydroxyalkanoates), PHB (polyhydroxybutyrate) are plastics that are able to be decomposed through synthetic methods. PET is one of the harder plastics to break down because the bacteria was recently discovered, as of 2016.
Solution:
My proposed solution to help eliminate the high concentration of microPETs in the water is to have a water passageway similar to algae biofuel farms to help filter out the water. The water would have a concentration of my designed bacteria. The concentration would be determined through testing in a lab setting before making this idea into a large-scale project. The bacteria would work as a filter to filter out the microplastics in water. This would make the water safer for wildlife to thrive in. My bacteria would have two receptors one for both compounds: PET and MHET. Next, the promoter would trigger the creation of the PETase and MHETase enzymes to break down the compounds. This two-step process would require the PET to completely break down before starting the MHET breakdown phase. MHET is the product of the PETase breaking down PET. After the MHET is broken down, ethylene glycol and terephthalic acid are created. This decomposition process would have to take place in the water as it requires water as a reactant in the process.
Truth Table:
Water
Polyethylene
Production of PETase and MHETase
1
0
0
0
1
0
1
1
1
Potential Problems:
Throughout the project, many problems may occur. First off, the bacteria may not be efficient enough to properly remove the microplastics, in which enzyme production will continue. A facility like this would be similar to a desalinization plant; meaning that the facility would be extremely expensive to maintain. The facility is based on a flow of water through a filter so, one may face a problem in terms of the containment of bacteria. The bacteria may not be properly contained in the filter and may drift into the ocean. Although the first look is not bad, as the bacteria eats microplastics, other variables may prove to be deadly for the ecosystem. Finally, the effects of the facility may be insignificant as it will primarily be based along the coastal lines. The facility will be dependent on electricity or other forms of energy to help maintain the bacterial filters.
Product Usage:
The byproduct of the decomposition of microplastics proves to be useful in many technological machines. Terephthalic acid is necessary when creating polyester coatings. Many appliances and automobiles require this acid to properly make the necessary pieces. Large companies such as Eastman would be able to access this acid in a cheaper way because the acid is recycled in the process. Ethylene glycol, the second byproduct, is used when creating antifreeze and coolants. Ethylene glycol is necessary for large-scale appliances and automobiles as well. The cooling mechanism in most appliances is dependent on ethylene glycol. The harvesting of the good may be difficult because the products are given off in a flowing stream. The only obvious way of harvesting the product would be through the difference of density. The products will be denser than the water so a layer of products would remain at the bottom of the facility.
Presentation
Project:
Plastic Degradation
Inspiration:
My inspiration was the recent movement by Parley. Parley has collaborated with Adidas to create shoes with plastic bottles. Eleven water bottles were used per shoe to create the woven mesh on many featured designs. The amount of plastic waste contaminating the Earth creates an urgent problem that must be solved.
Problem
at Hand:
According to Ocean Crusaders, 100,000 marine creatures and 1,000,000 seabirds die from plastic waste on a yearly basis. Eight million metric tons of plastic waste pollute the ocean. Apart from large pieces of plastic, microplastics are highly prevalent in most bodies of water. These microplastics attach to creatures guts and does not pass through easily. The microplastic particles often get woven into the fish guts leading to fishes suffering from dietary issues.
Background Information:
The focus plastic of this project is PET. PET is known as polyethylene terephthalate. This plastic is non-biodegradable and degradation processes are still being tested. PET is known to be broken down by mealworms or Idionella Sakaiensis. Mealworms are known to have a strong stomach, which most likely contains a bacteria or enzyme that converts plastic into biodegradable substances. Researchers at Stanford University have noted that 100 mealworms are capable of breaking down around 40 grams of PET a day. However, mealworms prefer eating other substances such as potatoes. The biodegradable substances created from the mealworm are primarily starch and carbon dioxide. Idionella Sakaiensis, on the other hand, is a bacteria found by research scientists in Kyoto, Japan. Idionella Sakaiensis breaks down the PET substances through a two enzyme process. First, PETase and water break down the plastic into MHET. The chemical MHET is further broken down by MHETase, creating ethylene glycol and terephthalic acid.
Focus Group:
For this project, I will be focusing on the bacteria Idionella Sakaiensis. Idionella Sakaiensis is a year old discovery where its use is still in development. This bacteria has been proven to break down PET. Polyethylene terephthalate, or PET, is hard to break down with Idionella Sakaiensis being one of the only bacterias to efficiently break down PET.
Current Bioremediation Methods:
Current bioremediation methods break down most plastics. PVC (polyvinyl chloride, polyurethane, PCL (polycaprolactone), PHA (polyhydroxyalkanoates), PHB (polyhydroxybutyrate) are plastics that are able to be decomposed through synthetic methods. PET is one of the harder plastics to break down because the bacteria was recently discovered, as of 2016.
Solution:
My proposed solution to help eliminate the high concentration of microPETs in the water is to have a water passageway similar to algae biofuel farms to help filter out the water. The water would have a concentration of my designed bacteria. The concentration would be determined through testing in a lab setting before making this idea into a large-scale project. The bacteria would work as a filter to filter out the microplastics in water. This would make the water safer for wildlife to thrive in. My bacteria would have two receptors one for both compounds: PET and MHET. Next, the promoter would trigger the creation of the PETase and MHETase enzymes to break down the compounds. This two-step process would require the PET to completely break down before starting the MHET breakdown phase. MHET is the product of the PETase breaking down PET. After the MHET is broken down, ethylene glycol and terephthalic acid are created. This decomposition process would have to take place in the water as it requires water as a reactant in the process.
Truth Table:
Potential Problems:
Throughout the project, many problems may occur. First off, the bacteria may not be efficient enough to properly remove the microplastics, in which enzyme production will continue. A facility like this would be similar to a desalinization plant; meaning that the facility would be extremely expensive to maintain. The facility is based on a flow of water through a filter so, one may face a problem in terms of the containment of bacteria. The bacteria may not be properly contained in the filter and may drift into the ocean. Although the first look is not bad, as the bacteria eats microplastics, other variables may prove to be deadly for the ecosystem. Finally, the effects of the facility may be insignificant as it will primarily be based along the coastal lines. The facility will be dependent on electricity or other forms of energy to help maintain the bacterial filters.
Product Usage:
The byproduct of the decomposition of microplastics proves to be useful in many technological machines. Terephthalic acid is necessary when creating polyester coatings. Many appliances and automobiles require this acid to properly make the necessary pieces. Large companies such as Eastman would be able to access this acid in a cheaper way because the acid is recycled in the process. Ethylene glycol, the second byproduct, is used when creating antifreeze and coolants. Ethylene glycol is necessary for large-scale appliances and automobiles as well. The cooling mechanism in most appliances is dependent on ethylene glycol. The harvesting of the good may be difficult because the products are given off in a flowing stream. The only obvious way of harvesting the product would be through the difference of density. The products will be denser than the water so a layer of products would remain at the bottom of the facility.